{"id":12,"date":"2013-07-19T07:13:42","date_gmt":"2013-07-19T12:13:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lifeandlibertyautos.wordpress.com\/?p=12"},"modified":"2013-07-19T07:13:42","modified_gmt":"2013-07-19T12:13:42","slug":"the-rules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.libertyautohouston.com\/blog\/the-rules\/","title":{"rendered":"The Rules"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This is the most intimidating picture of Gigi I could find. Fear her!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

All offices have policies, expectations, standards, etc.\u00a0 At Liberty Autos, we have The Rules.\u00a0 Visitors often notice that we have a sheet of paper taped to the wall that outlines The Rules of conduct while on the job.\u00a0 For all employees, The Rules are as follows:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. No drinking<\/li>\n
  2. No drugs<\/li>\n
  3. No friends<\/li>\n
  4. No pets<\/li>\n
  5. No guns<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The Rules are posted in the office; however, they were developed as a result of a few incidents that occurred on our clean-up lot.\u00a0 The clean-up lot is where all cars go when they first arrive at Liberty.\u00a0 The porters clean them, and the mechanics make any necessary repairs.\u00a0\u00a0 Once the cars are ready, the porters drive them to the retail lot to be sold.\u00a0 The clean-up lot is not adjacent to the retail lot and office, but is located further down Domino Lane towards the dead-end.\u00a0 The porters and mechanics exploit their seclusion from time to time; hence the advent of The Rules.<\/p>\n

    The first four rules were created after one unfortuitous Saturday.\u00a0 After realizing that no cars were being brought over to the retail lot by the mid-afternoon, my dad decided to walk back to the clean-up lot to see what the guys were doing and surely give them a good chewing out.\u00a0 He expected to find them lolling about or pretending to work.\u00a0 What he found was much more activity than anticipated.\u00a0 The guys were having a full blown party.\u00a0 They were dressed in their starched jeans, crisp shirts, and shiny boots.\u00a0 They were grilling fajitas, drinking beer, and hosting a large group of their friends.\u00a0 What the occassion was, we will never know.\u00a0 My dad pointed at them and said, “You’re all fired.”\u00a0 There is often a communication break down between the outside workers and my dad since they don’t speak the same language; however, this time they got what he said.\u00a0 So obviously, the rules of no drinking, no drugs, and no friends were created.\u00a0 I don’t know that they were doing drugs, but Dad threw it in there for good measure.\u00a0 Now the no pets rule was also made at that time, because the porters had collected a menagerie of animals on the clean-up lot.\u00a0 There were chickens, cats,\u00a0and dogs, including some Pomeranians.\u00a0 I don’t know what little, fluffy Pomeranians were doing on the clean-up lot, but a lot of things that happen there don’t make sense.\u00a0 Up until that dark day, Dad had tolerated the animals.\u00a0\u00a0 After that unkindest cut, he took away their animal privileges.\u00a0 Two of the workers, Rolando and Angel, got their jobs back the next week.\u00a0 Rolando still works here, but Angel is the cause of the final rule of no guns.<\/p>\n

    Angel had managed to get a bullet lodged in the chamber of his gun. \u00a0Without permission, he decided to bring the gun to the clean-up lot to work on dislodging the bullet.\u00a0 He secured the gun in a vice grip so he could work on it with both hands.\u00a0 By some chain of reasoning I will never understand, he had the index finger of his right hand over the business end of the gun.\u00a0 Rather than dislodging the bullet, the gun discharged and shot half of Angel’s finger off.\u00a0 For the rest of the time he was employed at Liberty Autos, he was called Nueve y media, or Nine and a half.\u00a0 It was not the kindest nickname, but I suppose you have to take some ridicule for shooting off the last digit of your own finger.<\/p>\n

    For a while The Rules disappeared.\u00a0 I think we painted the office, and the sign was thrown away.\u00a0\u00a0 Unfortunately, I was the cause of the re-instatement.\u00a0 The Rules were posted again after I started bringing my dog Gigi to work.\u00a0 Gigi is an 8 lb Brussels Griffon who is about as intimidating as a teddy bear.\u00a0 She is very high strung and neurotic, and I think the work environment was a bit too much for her.\u00a0 She clearly defined who was acceptable in the office or not.\u00a0 There was no problem with any of the regular office workers.\u00a0 She loved them and would greet them every morning.\u00a0 She also loved my dad and would try to sit on his lap all day.\u00a0 She also found no problem with customers, since they stay on the other side of the pay counter and do not enter into the inner sanctum of the office.\u00a0 However, if a porter dared enter into her domain, he did so at his own risk.\u00a0 Her first victim was Julio.\u00a0 Several of us were standing around talking, including my dad and myself, and Gigi was standing in our midst as if part of the conversation.\u00a0 Julio walked around the back of the group, behind Dad, and Gigi darted out and bit Julio on the ankle.\u00a0 I truly believe that in her mind she was protecting us from Julio.\u00a0 She didn’t break the skin, but it was quite a shock for us all.\u00a0 Gigi had never shown any sign of aggression, and she was eight years old.\u00a0 Gigi also hated Rolando, but he usually wears rubber boots so he’s protected from Gigi’s snaggly, little teeth.\u00a0 Julio was not injured in anyway, but he did not enter the office ever again when Gigi was there.<\/p>\n

    The same thing happened to our former\u00a0I.T. guy Doug.\u00a0 Everyone hated him, and I think Gigi sensed it.\u00a0 She saw him as a threat, and he could not pass between her and me.\u00a0 I was proud of her attempts to protect me.\u00a0 There was definitely something unwholesome about that man.\u00a0 One day he meandered through the office and passed too close to me.\u00a0 Gigi got him on the ankle.\u00a0 Again, he was not injured, but I think it hurt his feelings that we all thought it was funny.\u00a0\u00a0 He never worked for us again after that.<\/p>\n

    Gigi’s third strike came when my cousin Jimmy began working at Liberty.\u00a0 She just could not accept him.\u00a0 The same thing happened to him as to the others.\u00a0 He walked into the office one day, and Gigi attacked.\u00a0 Of all of her victims, Jimmy is the only one that Gigi has made peace with.\u00a0 Now if she and\u00a0Jimmy meet up, it’s\u00a0on friendly terms.<\/p>\n

    After the third biting incident, Dad reposted The Rules.\u00a0 I got the message and started leaving Gigi at home.\u00a0 I hate to have spoiled it for everyone, but the iron fist is back at Liberty.\u00a0 Now we all must abstain from drinking, getting high, partying, packing heat, and enjoying our pets while at work.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    All offices have policies, expectations, standards, etc.\u00a0 At Liberty Autos, we have The Rules.\u00a0 Visitors often notice that we have a sheet of paper taped to the wall that outlines The Rules of conduct while on the job.\u00a0 For all employees, The Rules are as follows: No drinking No drugs No friends No pets No […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":420,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n